stillpoint

Lightweight local observability: a FastAPI collector with a live dashboard for requests, logs, spans, and quick correlation by trace/request IDs.

Install (PyPI)

python -m pip install -U stillpoint

Quick start

1) Run the collector

stillpoint

Open http://127.0.0.1:7000/.

2) Instrument a FastAPI app

from stillpoint.agent import install_observability

client = install_observability(
    app_instance,
    collector_url="http://127.0.0.1:7000/ingest",
    token="dev-secret",
    service_name="my-api:8000",
    emit_request_span=True,  # optional single span per request
)

3) Tail access logs instead (no code changes)

set OBS_LOG_FILES=serviceA=/path/to/access.log
set OBS_TAIL_FROM_START=1
stillpoint

Usage scenarios

Single service + live UI

Run the collector, instrument your API, then browse the dashboard to:

• see live request volume, error rates, and p95 latency
• view recent requests and open trace details
• export a trace bundle as JSON

Multiple services

Point multiple services at the same collector URL with different service_name values. The dashboard will tag and filter by service.

Access-log only mode

When code changes are not possible, tail access logs via OBS_LOG_FILES. Note: spans and per-request logs are not available unless emitted by the app.

Configuration

Collector environment variables:

• OBS_TOKEN: bearer token for /ingest (default dev-secret)
• OBS_HOST, OBS_PORT: bind host/port (defaults 127.0.0.1:7000)
• OBS_RELOAD: set to 1 for reload (dev only)
• OBS_LOG_LEVEL: uvicorn log level (default info)
• OBS_WINDOW_S: metrics window seconds (default 120)
• OBS_MAX_EVENTS: SSE buffer size (default 30000)
• OBS_LOG_FILES: tail access logs (comma-separated svc=/path.log)
• OBS_TAIL_FROM_START: set 1 to read logs from start
• OBS_SLOW_MS: slow request threshold (default 750)
• OBS_SAMPLE_RATE: sample rate for normal traffic (default 0.05)
• OBS_TRACE_STORE: max traces stored (default 2000)
• OBS_TRACE_LOGS: max logs per trace (default 200)
• OBS_TRACE_SPANS: max spans per trace (default 200)
• OBS_RECENT_REQS: max recent requests kept (default 2000)

Agent config (per app):

• collector_url, token, service_name in install_observability
• emit_request_span=True to get a default request span

Data points collected

Events emitted and stored:

• req_start / req_end: method, path/route, status, duration, client info, trace_id, span_id, request_id, plus headers subset
• log: level, logger, message, optional trace
• span: name, duration, optional metadata (type, db, http, cache)
• gauge: used for inflight counts when emitted by the app

Derived metrics:

• RPS, error rates, status buckets (2xx/3xx/4xx/5xx)
• per-endpoint p50/p95/p99 and tail latency thresholds
• recent requests list and slowest individual traces

Local development

Run from source (no install):

python -m uvicorn stillpoint.collector_app:app --app-dir src --host 127.0.0.1 --port 7000 --reload

Tests:

python -m pytest

Code structure:

• src/stillpoint/collector_app.py: FastAPI collector + metrics + API
• src/stillpoint/agent.py: app-side middleware + log handler
• src/stillpoint/ui/: dashboard assets